Strong demand for its SUVs and MPVs sees the company register its best monthly despatches of 25,119 units in March 2024 and record fiscal year sales of 244,490 units in FY2024, bettering its CY2023 sales of 221,356 units.
01 Apr 2024 | 10405 Views | By Ajit Dalvi
Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) is the first of the passenger vehicle manufacturers in India to release its wholesales numbers for FY2024. And they are the harbinger of similar big numbers to be announced by other OEMs. With March 2024 delivering best-ever monthly sales of 25,119 units, the car, SUV and ...
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Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) is the first of the passenger vehicle manufacturers in India to release its wholesales numbers for FY2024. And they are the harbinger of similar big numbers to be announced by other OEMs. With March 2024 delivering best-ever monthly sales of 25,119 units, the car, SUV and MPV manufacturer has also recorded its best-ever domestic market sales in a fiscal year. At an estimated 244,940 units, TKM has posted strong 41% year-on-year growth (FY2023: 173,245 units).
This performance over the past 12 months (April 2023-March 2024) betters the company’s wholesales in calendar year 2023 and reflects the sustained demand for most of its products. In CY2023, TKM registered its best-ever annual sales – 221,356 units – as a result of sustained demand for its MPVs and SUVs as also the rebadged models like the Glanza, Urban Cruiser Hyryder and Rumion, ramped-up production and a number of customer-friendly initiatives.
In FY2024, the top two models for TKM are the Innova Crysta / Hycross MPV and the Urban Cruiser Hyryder SUV. Between April 2023 and end-February 2024, the Innova models had sold an estimated 88,281 units and the Hyryder, 42,951 units. The third best-selling UV is the Fortuner with 28,050 units in the first 11 months of FY2024. All these three models are among the Top 25 UVs in the April 2023-February 24 period: the Innova in 12th position, Hyryder 19th and the Fortuner at No. 21.
One such initiative rolled out in February 2024 is the ‘Awesome New Car Delivery Solution’ from TKM's authorised dealers. This sees the deployment of flat-bed trucks to transport new vehicles from dealer stockyards directly to sales outlets, which means the PVs arrive in pristine condition, untouched by road travel. This approach, as per the company, not only elevates the customer's experience but also addresses the logistical challenges in rural and semi-urban areas.
Commenting on the company’s performance, Sabari Manohar – Vice-President, Sales-Service-Used Car Business, Toyota Kirloskar Motor said: "We are thrilled to close both our wholesales for 2023-24 fiscal year and March 2024 by recording the highest ever units. Instrumental to our growth has been our strong product portfolio, tailormade value-added services such as enhanced digitalization, financial tie-ups, high value proposition, easy accessibility to our products/services. Notably, the SUV and MUV segments were our biggest contributors with models like the Innova Crysta, Innova HyCross, Fortuner, Legender, Urban Cruiser Hyryder, Hilux and LC300. Other product offerings such as the Camry Hybrid, Glanza, Vellfire and the Rumion too have fuelled the company’s upward sales trend."
He added, "Also in 2023, we expanded our annual production capacity by almost 32,000 units to meet the growing demand from our valued customers. Additionally, we made new investments of Rs 3,300 crore, which will be further enhanced us to gear up for our next phase of business expansion duly incorporating technological transformation in achieving carbon neutrality goals. We are strongly motivated by good market acceptance for all our products that reflects the company’s multiple technology pathway. Looking ahead, we are poised to leverage emerging opportunities in both metro and non-metro markets.”